Tips to Protect your WiFi from hackers

1. Disabling the SSID broadcast. To some extent this makes it difficult for the hacker to detect the presence of a WiFi access point.
2. Enable MAC address filter. Each network interface has a unique MAC address, by filtering it, one can to an extent control which machines can use the access point.
3. Turn on WPA/WEP encryption. This ensures that traffic between a legitimate machine and an access point is not readable.
4. Change default admin passwords for access points.
5. Ensure access points are placed securely. In the centre of a room/office etc to minimize its signal strength outside the office.

Even after following the above precautions, your WiFI account could be compromised and hence, the things to look at are:

• Monitor usage of the access point. Have a clear inventory and knowledge about the position of each access point.
• Monitor the usage of the Internet link, to know what traffic is going out. For example, some corporate block e-mail providers like yahoo or hotmail. Hence, even if the access point is compromised, the hacker may not be able to use public e-mail systems.
• Consider a specific security policy for wireless networks. For example, most companies primarily use wired networks in the office as the primary media. Access points are used in common areas like conferences rooms etc. Hence, strict policies can be deployed on wireless networks as compared to wired networks.

Google Chrome has Microsoft's code inside

Google Chrome has Microsoft's code inside, says MS manager

A great post over at Scott Hanselman's blog goes into some detail of the Microsoft code Google has included in Chrome. It's all street-legal: the code was made available under a very permissive open source licence back in 2004, and may be the first of Microsoft's steps in that direction.
Hanselman is a senior program manager at MS, and clearly enthusiastic about the whole business. He also writes a mean blog--if you've got any curiosity about some of the gnarly bits inside Chrome, including how it works securely with multiple versions of Windows, then give this the once-over.
Even more interesting than Chrome's internals is this statement:
"One of the reasons I wanted to work for ScottGu was because of Microsoft's always improving attitude about releasing source. It's a big company and sometimes moves slow, but more people "get it" now than before."
I do so hope this is true. Can't happen quickly enough.

Microsoft® Popfly™

Microsoft® Popfly™ is the fun, easy way to build and share mashups, gadgets, games, Web pages, and applications.

Create Games. Popfly is a simple way to create and share games with your friends. Choose from a variety of built-in templates or start from scratch to create a side scrolling game, a 2D shoot-em-up, or a host of others. And best of all, you can get started without writing a line of code.

Build Mashups. Mashups are a kind of application that take information from many places and mix it together. With Popfly's mashup creator you'll be able to take photos, RSS feeds, and many other kinds of information and combine them to create your own personalized view of the web.

Design a Web Page. Always wanted to create a web page but thought it was too hard? Popfly makes it easy with its simple web page creator.

...and Much More. Popfly makes it easy to place your creations into your blog, your Facebook page, or even make them into Windows Vista sidebar gadgets. And it's fully integrated with Visual Studio™ so as you gain experience you can upgrade to professional-quality tools.

Make your own game. If you have an idea for a game but don't want to learn to program, Popfly is an easy way to get started making it real. No coding is required, and Popfly supplies a large library of actors, images, and sounds so you can get started quickly.

Try recreating one of the classics, like creating a personal version of Space Invaders™ in just a couple of minutes. And if you ever feel you're running out of power, Popfly makes it easy to step into the source code and take full control.

Display your images, your way. If you have photos on a web site like Flickr™ or Windows® Live™ Spaces, Popfly can quickly convert them into a variety of attractive display formats and embed them into any blog, Facebook page, or even turn them into a Windows Vista® sidebar gadget with the click of a button.

Map information with Popfly. Whether it's your Twitter friends, photos, or something like earthquake activity, Popfly makes it simple to put information onto a map so you can see it and share it with your friends.

Do you use Facebook? Do you want a more custom experience? All Popfly creations can be embedded in your Facebook page to make it truly yours. And Popfly even comes with full Facebook support for games like Halo 3™ and World of Warcraft™.

iPhone 3G

iPhone 3G was launched in India. But with exorbitant price tags. 31K and 36K are just too much for this phone.
I don’t suggest buying it at this price. Wait a few more months! The price will come down!

(Photo Credit: James Martin/CNET News.com)

The latest version of the iPhone will be launched around 11 July. And it will be available in India. The price will be $199 for the 8GB model, and $299 for the 16GB one. It will have 3G, GPS and much more!

Things look very exciting for the iPhone now! At the same time, Samsung is launching a competitor!

20 things you need to know about Google Chrome

20 things you need to know about Google Chrome

Google took the unusual step of announcing its new browser via an online comic. We've had a read through and pulled out the things you need to know about Google's new browser.

1. Google Chrome is built using WebKit, which also powers Apple's Safari and Google's Android.

2. Google Chrome is beta, and currently only available for Windows. Mac and Linux versions are being produced.

3. Google Chrome promises to be more stable - each browser tab will run in its own process so a buggy web page won't take down the entire browser..

4. The tabs will be the key part of the interface - tabs will be located at the top of the window rather than under the address bar.

5. When you open a new tab, you'll see thumbnails of your nine most visited pages and search boxes for the sites you search most on.

6. You'll be able to 'tear off' tabbed windows and move them elsewhere onto the desktop, creating separate windows or adding them to existing windows.

7. When a tab crashes you'll get a sad face icon in the tab - called a 'sad tab'.

8. Each tab will have its own controls and its own URL bar, which Google's developers are calling the 'Omnibox'.

9. The Omnibox isn't just somewhere to type web addresses - it will also suggest pages you've visited before, and popular pages you haven't visited, based on the keywords you type into the box.

10. You'll be able to search your browser history from the Omnibox to return to pages you visited previously but didn't bookmark.

11. Autocomplete will only autocomplete to an address you have manually typed before - Google's example is that typing C and hitting return might take you to cnn..com but never to a previously clicked link such as cnn.com/2008/ politics/ 07/27/campaign. wrap/index. html.

12. Once you've performed a search on sites such as Wikipedia or Google, you'll then be able to search those sites later straight from your address bar by typing the site's name and then pressing the Tab key.

13. Google Chrome has a private browsing mode - if you create what it calls an "incognito window" then pages won't be saved in your history and when you close the window, any related cookies will be deleted.

14. Google Chrome promises to be faster - because each tab runs in a separate process, that process is killed when a tab is closed, and so your PC gets the memory back.

15. Google Chrome will feature a new JavaScript virtual machine. Google says this will be more efficient at running JavaScript-heavy apps such as Gmail, and allow smoother drag-and-drops.

16. Google Chrome comes with a Task Manager that lets you see which sites are using the most memory on your PC - and just like with the Windows Task manager, you'll be able end processes that are sucking up memory.

17. Google Chrome promises to be more secure - processes won't be able to write to your hard drive or read documents, for example.

18. Google Chrome will be constantly updated with information on phishing and malware sites and warn you if you attempt to visit one.

19. Google Chrome is being tested against millions of web pages - and Google is using its Page Rank system to ensure the browser is first tested against the web's most popular pages.

20. Google Chrome will be fully open source, so everyone will be able to contribute - and examine the code, which should allay any privacy fears.

Microsoft Internet Explorer 8 for XP

Microsoft Internet Explorer 8 for XP


 

Microsoft Internet Explorer 8 for XP takes the Web experience beyond the page and introduces a new way to seamlessly experience the power of the Web whether you are a Web developer writing to standards, or an end user discovering a new online service. This beta release is available to everyone, but is primarily for Web developers and designers to test the new tools, layout engine, and programming enhancements. 

When not developing your web site, you can click the Emulate IE7 button in the command bar to browse the web like you did in IE7. 

Visit the Internet Explorer website to learn more about how Internet Explorer 8 puts the Web at Your Service. 

This beta release is not supported by Microsoft Support Services. Visit the Internet Explorer Newsgroup to discuss Internet Explorer Beta 2 with other users. 

Supported Operating Systems: Windows XP Service Pack 2 

Hmm! Who will use IE8 when we have FF and Chrome to try... Better luck MS

Chrome Grabs 1% in One Day!

Google Chrome went live today. I had a chance to play around with it a bit and like what I see. This qualifies as one of those products that is best experimented with as opposed to read about, so head on over to http://www.google.com/chrome and download it for your self. At worst you will have wasted five minutes of your time. Alternatively, you may have found a nice back up web browser, or even your new main web browser.

I am sticking with Fire Fox as my main web browser for now, but as I continue to experiment with Chrome, who knows?

Download the Chrome from here http://www.google.com/chrome
Check the Press conference http://blogs.zdnet.com/BTL/?p=9858
Also dont forget to check a book on Chrome .. http://books.google.com/books?id=8UsqHohwwVYC

And Add to this...

According to research conducted StatCounter, Google’s new browser, Chrome, has taken 1% of the global browser market within a day of launch.

Google’s unusual step of publicising the Chrome browser on its notoriously clutter-free homepage is an indication of the plans that Google has for this browser…

“This is a phenomenal performance,” commented Aodhan Cullen, “this is war on Microsoft but the big loser could be Firefox.”

While Google may have the Internet Explorer market share in its sights, the fact that many Firefox users are more “mobile” as far as browser use is concerned, may impact on the current Firefox market share.

IPhone Parody